Approved by the EU

Bulgaria puts saints on euro coins for the first time

Ivan (right) is depicted on the coin with a habit, cross and halo, Paissi (left) is not recognizable as a monk and saint.

(Bild: Bulgarian National Bank, Krone KREATIV)

Bulgaria could become the first EU member state to feature national saints on regular euro coins. The patron saint of the Bulgarians, Ivan Rilski, is to appear on the 1 euro coin and the monk Paissi of Hilandar on the 2 euro coin.

This was announced by the Bulgarian National Bank following the completion of the process of coordinating and approving the coin designs, as reported by the portal "katholisch.de". The two depicted are saints of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. The Bulgarian government is aiming for the country to join the eurozone in 2025. The introduction of the euro, which was already planned for 2024, had to be postponed due to high inflation, among other things.

Ivan Rilski (876 to 946) was the first Bulgarian hermit and founded the country's largest monastery in the Rila Mountains. Since 1999, he has been depicted on the 1 lev coin that was valid until the introduction of the euro. Paissi of Hilandar (1722 to 1773) is considered the first historian of his nation and a pioneer of the Bulgarian National Revival of the 18th and 19th centuries. Ivan is depicted on the coin with a habit, cross and halo, Paissi is not recognizable as a monk and saint. The planned 2-euro coin also bears the inscription "God save Bulgaria".

EU approved designs at the beginning of February
At the beginning of February, the Council of the European Union approved the designs for the coins after no objections were received from EU member states in the eurozone. In the past, there have been coin designs with Christian motifs on commemorative coins alone, but they have also met with reservations in some cases.

In 2013, for example, Slovakia was only able to publish a 2-euro commemorative coin with the Slavic apostles Cyril and Methodius after a delay, as France and Greece, among others, had objected to the crosses and halos in the motif. In the end, the originally planned design was minted.

In the same year, the European Commission rejected the planned depiction of Christ as Pantocrator (which means ruler of the world and is a designation of God that has been used to refer to Jesus Christ in particular since early Christianity; note) on Andorran coins. In contrast, the Vatican also issued a 2-euro coin with the statue of Christ for World Youth Day in Rio in 2013.

No criteria for images on coins
The objections to the coins from Andorra and Slovakia were based on violations of the principle of religious neutrality. The procedure for the approval of EU coins does not specify any criteria for the content, but gives EU member states the opportunity to raise reasoned objections.

The only other national saint on euro coins is St. Marinus of Rimini, who is depicted on the 20-cent pieces from San Marino. San Marino belongs to the eurozone, but is not a member of the EU.

The coins from the Vatican with the portrait of Pope John Paul II (1978 to 2005) that were put into circulation during his lifetime and before his canonization are still valid. Various commemorative and collector coins feature religious motifs and buildings as well as saints, including the apostle Paul (Vatican, 2 euros) and the Irish apostle Brendan (Ireland, 10 euros).